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Arvind Datar

NLSIU Bangalore vice chancellor (VC) Prof Venkata Rao is due to retire on 10 May 2019 and a search committee has been formed to find his successor, though it has not yet met, according to authoritative sources.

The Supreme Court today finished hearing counsel in the Bar Council of India (BCI) petition against the practice of law by foreign lawyers in India, in a hearing that began in the morning and reconvened at 3pm to finish only by nearly 5:30pm.

The ongoing hearing of the Bar Council of India (BCI) appeal in the apex court against the AK Balaji Madras high court judgment took an interesting turn today, with Justice AK Goel suggesting to the counsel that instead of the current FIFO (fly-in and Flying Out) that had been suggested by the high court, foreign lawyers should rather stay here, and offer legal advice, to get relief from any restrictions.

Five celebrity petitioners, who claim to have experienced the wrong end of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code because of their sexual orientation, have sought the Supreme Court's intervention through a writ petition to declare it unconstitutional.

The Supreme Court’s five-judge constitution bench headed by Justice JS Khehar is set to pronounce its consequential judgment in the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) case in the morning today (16 December) at Court No 3 at 10:30 AM

Professor Upendra Baxi, in a comment to Legally India, had expressed his surprise how his name appears in the list of those who made proposals for reforming the Collegium, compiled by Supreme Court appointed committee comprising senior advocate, Arvind Datar and ASG, Pinky Anand, as he had not submitted any such proposal. Prof Baxi was also surprised that his so-called proposal was also shown not contributing to any of the five categories, identified by the Court and the Committee, namely, Collegium Secretariat, Eligibility Criteria, Transparency, Mechanism to deal with complaints and Miscellaneous.

The report submitted to the Supreme Court’s Constitution Bench by Senior Advocate Arvind Datar and ASG, Pinky Anand on the neo-collegium received over 60 representations and suggestions from various associations and individuals.

As the Supreme Court’s five-Judge Constitution Bench presided over by Justice JS Khehar began its hearing on reforming the collegium (the in-house mechanism to recruit Judges to the higher judiciary after its recent revival by the same bench) the bench sought advice from counsel on both sides on how to navigate the plethora of diverse proposals which it received.

The Indian judiciary has been grappling with the question of whether to permit foreign lawyers to practice in India for more than two decades. After yesterday’s hearing in the Supreme Court, it doesn’t look like any end is in sight.

Senior advocate Arvind Datar is being considered by the Supreme Court collegium, the Times of India first reported yesterday, after Legally India reported last week that senior counsel Uday Lalit too was in the process of being elevated to the Supreme Court.

The Madras high court ordered Nokia to deposit Rs 240 crore as a deposit against the tax department's claim of Rs 2,400 crore against the Finnish mobile phone maker. Its sales from a Chennai factory are subject to a tax demand, which it claims is without merit, and that it won't be able to make the deposit within eight weeks due to cash flow issues.

The high court has also asked the Tamil Nadu government to reconsider its demand in the meantime. Senior counsel Arvind P Datar and Luthra & Luthra partner Vikas Srivastav are representing Nokia. [Economic Times]

The chief justice of India Altamas Kabir yesterday told off senior advocate Arvind Dattar who, in the matter of SEBI V Sahara, had objected to his passing an order contradictory to an order passed by a two judge bench of the court - before which bench the matter is still pending.

A bench of justices KS Radhakrishnan and JS Khehar had on 31 August ordered two Sahara group companies to refund the Rs 24,000 crore they had collected through optional fully convertible debentures, to SEBI with 15 per cent interest by 30 November, because Sahara had violated regulatory norms.

Yesterday Kabir’s bench, also comprising justices SS Nijjar and J Chelameswar, allowed the Sahara group to complete the payment of refund to SEBI in two months’ time, ending in the first week of February, contrary to the 31 August order.

The bench reasoned that it was allowing Sahara’s application to protect the interest of investors. The investors, however, were not given a hearing before this order.

Dattar, appearing for SEBI, insisted that propriety called for the matter to be heard by the bench before which it was pending, and that Kabir must record this submission in the court’s order.

"We will record what we feel to record. We cannot record what you say,” shot back Kabir.

Senior advocate Vikas Singh insisted that the investors’ and Sahara’s application should not be disposed of without hearing the investors, which suggestion was again dismissed by Kabir in, reportedly, an “angry tone”. [Hindustan Times]

Singh was appearing for the Universal Investors Association, and wanted the court to take up a writ petition filed on behalf of the investors. Kabir’s bench rejected the plea saying that the investors had no rights since they were not party to the main petition. [The Hindu]

Legally India Supreme Court postcard writer Court Witness tweeted: “Would completely understand if both or one of Radhakrishnan & Khehar are supremely upset with Kabir for undermining them in this way.”